Starting Anew
by FanofBellaandEdward
Summary: Sequel to Starting Over. Divorced parents don't mean the end of the world and Scorpius discovers that sometimes bad things can lead to good ones, even if the path towards them isn't always smooth. Angst, bit of drama, established slash, past infidelity, implied MPreg


**Author's note: This is the third installment of the series Of Endings and Beginnings. This is a direct sequel to Starting Again and Starting Over. Reading those two first would help with understanding this fic.**

**Warnings: some angst, some drama, implied MPreg; established slash; past infidelity; Scorpius' pov (you know the usual)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter - J.K. Rowling owns it**

**I hope you'll like this third part!**

* * *

**Starting Anew**

Grey eyes were locked onto each other, gazing solemnly. One blink. Two blinks.

The silence was broken by a high pitched murmur and spit bubbles popping.

Scorpius smiled and shook his head, while large, silver grey eyes stared at him innocently. Two small, chubby hands rose up in the air and opened and closed several times, making grabbing movements.

He reached over and offered his pinkie to the four month old baby girl, who grabbed it eagerly and gurgled happily.

"You're easy to please, huh," Scorpius remarked amused and slowly moved his pinkie up and down, feelings the tiny fingers tightening around his in response.

Lily spit another bubble at him, while offering him a huge, toothless smile.

Harry had asked him to take care of her for a little while, while he dealt with a Floo call regarding his job. The man had taken up his work when Lily was two months old; one day she joined him at his job and the next day, father took her with him if he had to leave the manor.

Scorpius was currently studying a chapter of transfiguration, trying to comprehend the new material, but he didn't mind taking care of his sister. Despite not being able to do much yet, she was fun to play with and she barely cried. The few times she started fussing and crying were because she was hungry or had to have her diaper changed. Aside from those moments, she was a really quiet baby, but quick to offer a smile and bright laughter whenever something amused her – which happened a lot.

While it had taken him some time to get used to the feeling – and responsibility – of being an older brother, he took his role seriously and he missed her whenever he was with mother. That was one of the many downsides of having divorced parents: he couldn't see his half sibling whenever he liked. Maybe he would have been able to visit her throughout the week if mother had been open to that, but ever since Lily was born, she seemed to despise Harry even more and she had grown a tad bitter.

Scorpius had already caught her ranting multiple times to her sister about Harry and Lily whenever she thought he was asleep or busy elsewhere in the house. It made him uncomfortable and restless. It would probably be too much to ask for her to be civil to Harry – she regarded him as the sole reason her marriage had ended – but Scorpius questioned why she couldn't be nice to Lily. It wasn't Lily's fault that she was father's daughter with another person. Out of everyone involved, she was probably the most innocent one and didn't deserve the scorn mother directed at her.

A sad sigh left Scorpius while he studied his sister, who was murmuring something in her own language, sounding very solemn. When she heard the exhale, her large eyes blinked curiously at him and she cooed softly, as if she wanted to comfort him.

The corners of his mouth curled up in a tiny smile; no matter how sad he felt, Lily always managed to make him smile.

"You know what day it is tomorrow?" he asked her, even though he knew she couldn't answer him yet.

She blinked at him.

"It's my birthday tomorrow," he informed her and carefully picked her up, placing her on his lap. She waved her arms around and gurgled happily. He made sure to have a good grip on her, so that she wouldn't tumble and fall off. He would never forgive himself if he hurt his little sister. "So our grandparents are going to come, Aunt Pansy and Uncle Blaise and my mother." His lips thinned a bit when he mentioned mother. Until now, she hadn't set foot in Malfoy Manor ever since the day the divorce was finalized; tomorrow would be the first time she was back here and he wondered how that would go. It was mother who had insisted on gathering the family together on Scorpius' birthday, but what she probably hadn't foreseen was that Harry would attend the party as well, together with Lily. Father had been adamant that the other man was present together with their daughter and Scorpius wanted that as well. Sure, he wasn't ready yet to call Harry 'dad', but that didn't mean that he didn't like the man. His birthday wouldn't feel complete without having the man around.

It would also be the first time that his grandparents would meet Lily. He didn't know whether they had met Harry officially yet – he didn't doubt that they knew him and they did seem to have a history with him – so his birthday would be a very interesting day. He only hoped that it wouldn't end on a sour note.

"I'm sorry for taking so long," Harry apologized when he entered the room. He looked rather haggard and his hair was quite unkempt.

Scorpius looked up with a smile, while Lily cried out in joy, smacking her hands together. "I don't mind," he reassured the older man, who knelt down in front of him and smiled at his daughter. "She wasn't a bother."

"Were you a good girl for your brother?" Harry cooed and carefully picked her up, cradling her against his chest.

His reply was her smacking her hand against his chest, making him chuckle. "Thanks for watching her, Scorpius," he smiled and turned around. "I'll let you go back to your homework then. Dinner is ready in one hour."

"Okay," Scorpius murmured and reluctantly dragged himself back to his desk, where the open book of transfiguration was seemingly admonishing him for being distracted by his sister. Entertaining the baby was a lot more interesting than discovering the origins of the Levitation spell.

* * *

At eleven thirty that night, Scorpius sneaked back to his room; in his hand a cup with warm milk. He had been sleeping, but he had woken up with a dry mouth and he hadn't been in the mood for cold water, so he had crept downstairs to ask the elves in the kitchen for some warm milk. Now he was trying to sneak back without being heard by father, who didn't approve of him being out of bed at this late hour.

The door of his bedroom was already pushed open far enough to let him slip through without alerting anyone, when soft voices further down the hallway caught his attention. Cocking his head slightly, he looked around and saw that there was still a light in father's bedroom.

Biting his lip, he hovered in front of his door, knowing that he should just go inside, drink his milk and go back to sleep. It wasn't his business what father was discussing with Harry and moreover, it was impolite to eavesdrop.

He knew all that and in spite of that, his feet turned around and brought him silently over to the other bedroom, where the voices were now clearly audible. He halted right behind the door and listened.

"Don't you think it would be … better if I left for a couple of hours tomorrow?" Harry suggested, making the blond boy in the hallway frown and feeling hurt. Why didn't Harry want to be here at his birthday? Weren't they a family?

"What? Why on earth would you leave?" Father asked bewildered.

The bed sheets rustled when someone moved. "Oh, I don't know." For the first time since Scorpius knew Harry, the man sounded sarcastic. "Maybe it's because there will be a group of people visiting tomorrow who don't like me."

"Aren't you overexa …"

"Your parents are coming over and I'm pretty certain at least your father still despises me. I don't have a good track record with your best friends either – although, I suppose Zabini at least won't give any trouble. Oh, and then there is that lovely ex-wife of yours, who just _loves_ seeing me." His voice was practically dripping with sarcasm now and it made Scorpius shuffle his feet nervously. He had never heard Harry sounding so bitter before; the man was always so gentle and good humoured around him.

Father sighed. "Look, Pansy won't give you any trouble; she promised that. My mother really wants to meet you officially and see her granddaughter and my father knows better than being an arse to you with her nearby. As for Astoria …" Father was silent for a minute, before he continued reluctantly, "There is a chance that she might act a bit pissed off, but she'll get over it."

"Draco, it's been nearly a year since the divorce and she still looks like I'm going to kidnap Scorpius every time I open the door. Look, I don't want to ruin Scorpius' birthday party, all right? Maybe it's best if I stay out for a while, so that the party won't get disturbed," Harry replied softly. "Lily can stay with you."

"Harry, for Merlin's sake," Father groaned. "I know Scorpius isn't really open about this, but he really wants you there for his birthday. He's looking forward to having his family with him – and that includes you, Harry. Don't disappoint him now."

Scorpius stared at the carpeted floor while silence rung in the room. Had he been giving the impression that he wouldn't care whether Harry was there or not? He wasn't one to display his feelings openly, but he thought the older man had known he wanted him to attend his birthday party. It wouldn't be the same without Harry.

"Fine, I'll stay here," Harry said eventually and sounded weary. "But don't be surprised if it doesn't end well," he warned father darkly.

Father chuckled and then there was the sudden sound of a kiss ringing through the room, making Scorpius' cheeks flare up in embarrassment and leaving him feeling quite flustered. Would he ever get used to his father being affectionate with Harry?

"It'll be fine, you'll see," Father murmured.

"I'm holding you responsible for anything bad that will happen," Harry retorted petulantly and then the light went out, leaving Scorpius standing in the darkness.

He had never realised before how bothered Harry was by mother's treatment and he chided himself for not noticing it earlier. Of course it had to bother the dark haired wizard; mother wasn't exactly subtle with her opinion about him.

Maybe it was a bad idea to have Harry and mother in one room together, he admitted silently to himself while he shuffled back to his room. But he was selfish and he didn't want to miss either one of them.

Wasn't it normal to want his family together for his birthday?

* * *

The following day, Scorpius was ripped out of his restless sleep by father, who came to wake him up.

"Happy birthday, Scorpius," Father smiled and a house elf opened the curtains, showing a thick layer of snow sticking to the window. It was the end of January and the snow had graced them with its presence for several days already, making Scorpius grateful for the heating in every room.

"Thank you, father," Scorpius replied sleepily and hid his yawn behind a hand. He was still drowsy despite it being nine o'clock already. It was Saturday, which meant that he wouldn't have to meet up with his tutors today – a small mercy.

"Your grandparents are going to arrive soon," Father informed him. "You still have time for breakfast, before grandmother finds you." He winked and chuckled when he heard the poorly concealed groan escaping his son's mouth.

Scorpius loved his grandmother, really, but she could be quite overbearing at times. He knew she meant well, but that didn't take away the fact that it made him a bit uncomfortable to be subjected to her tight hugs.

Still, he had only spoken to his grandparents through the Floo system, as they lived in another country and usually only conversed through the post and the Floo system. So it would be nice to see them again without their faces being distorted by the flames.

* * *

Exactly forty-five minutes later, the Floo in the foyer announced the arrival of his grandparents and he stood up when the door opened, revealing his grandmother dressed in a pale green gown that reached her ankles and shimmered in the weak sunlight. Her hair was slightly curled and fell loosely across her back and shoulders. Her ice blue eyes glittered when she caught sight of her grandson.

"Scorpius, my darling. I've missed you!" she spoke and Scorpius accepted the hug she bestowed upon him, smelling the faint scent of lavender and roses, which always clung to his grandmother. It was a nice smell and he burrowed his face in her neck, feeling her body radiating warmth.

"Narcissa, please do make certain you are not suffocating the poor boy," Grandfather remarked dryly and the grip around Scorpius loosened, allowing him to pull back and glance at the imposing man standing in the doorway.

"I was not suffocating him," Grandmother retorted calmly.

"Happy birthday, Scorpius," Grandfather said to him, ignoring grandmother's remark.

"Thank you," Scorpius replied shyly. Despite carrying around a cane and using it as support, his grandfather was an imposing man who commanded respect without having to do anything. He was fairly stern, but he had a soft spot for his grandson.

Grandmother looked around, seemingly searching something while grandfather sat down on the couch, pulling her along with him.

"Where is my granddaughter and Mister Potter?" Grandmother asked curiously, gazing imploringly at father.

"He'll be here soon with Lily," Father informed her with a small smile. "He was just changing her diaper."

"No need for him to hurry on our account," Grandfather grunted and scowled at his wife when she nudged his side.

"Behave, Lucius," she warned him and grandfather huffed, but didn't retort.

All heads spun around to the door when it opened again, revealing Harry cradling Lily against his chest.

He looked rather flustered when he closed the door behind him and approached the group. "Sorry I'm late," he murmured and sat down next to father. Lily was dressed in a pale blue dress which made her black hair stand out. She was gurgling softly to herself, entranced by her feet which were covered by white socks. She kicked with her legs, hitting Harry in his arm.

"Good morning, Mrs. Malfoy, Mister Malfoy," Harry said and inclined his head.

Even from his place on the couch Scorpius saw how tense the older man was and he barely dared to move when he noticed the looks being exchanged between his grandparents and Harry.

"Good morning, Mister Potter," Grandmother greeted back and offered a faint smile. "You are practically family now, so would you mind calling me by my first name? We may have had an unconventional first meeting, but I hope to put the past to rest and start over again."

"Fine by me, as long as you call me by my first name as well," Harry replied and sounded a tad more relaxed.

"I suppose I could get used to you," Grandfather murmured and he sounded strangely petulant.

"Likewise." Harry's smile was rather thin.

Grandmother clapped her hands. "Can I take a look at Lily? Seeing her through the Floo just isn't the same," she sighed forlornly.

Harry chuckled and stood up to walk over to grandmother, so she could cradle the baby against her chest.

"Aw, aren't you a beautiful girl," Grandmother smiled and dropped a soft kiss on Lily's forehead.

Lily stared at her, before she broke out in a big grin and cried out in excitement.

Grandfather declined holding her, but Scorpius thought that he looked quite smitten with the small girl and he had to hide a grin. Lily was incredibly good at wrapping people around her little finger.

The Floo chimed again and a couple of minutes later, Aunt Pansy entered the room; her long, dark brown hair put up in a high bun and crystal earrings catching the light, while a dark blue dress fell loosely around her hips.

"Where is the birthday boy?" she smiled and came over to kiss Scorpius on the cheek. "Happy birthday, darling."

"Thank you, Aunt Pansy," Scorpius smiled and accepted her brief hug.

"Your manor is as impeccable as ever," Uncle Blaise told father, who rolled his eyes at the strange remark. "Happy birthday, brat."

"Thanks, uncle," Scorpius chuckled, used to the strange endearment by now.

"Aw, Potter, you and Draco really do have good genes," Aunt Pansy cooed when she caught sight of Lily.

"Thanks, Parkinson," Harry retorted dryly and accepted Lily back in his arms.

"How many are you expecting?" Uncle Blaise inquired after handing over the presents to a house elf.

"Just Astoria and then we're complete," Father replied and a slight grimace tainted his lips.

Uncle Blaise blinked surprised, before a smirk unfolded on his face. "Well, this is going to be very interesting," he murmured and ignored the jab in his side from Aunt Pansy.

When Scorpius glanced at Harry, he saw how the man had his lips pressed in a thin line and he shifted uncomfortably when he remembered the conversation he had overheard last night.

The chime of the Floo silenced the whole room now and the tension rose slightly. Even Uncle Blaise's smirk had dimmed somewhat and he looked apprehensive.

"Good morning, Astoria," Grandmother said when the woman halted in the doorway.

Mother's light blonde hair was pulled back from her face by a silver hairclip adorned with a small flower. The pale purple dress she wore reached her knees and flared out, while a brown belt accentuated her slim waist. Her present was handed over to a house elf as well and she stepped forwards as soon as the elf disappeared.

"Good morning, Narcissa, Lucius," she replied and gave them a polite smile. Her smile froze over when she looked at father. "Draco." Her eyes glided over Harry – utterly ignoring him and Lily – and briefly rested on the couple standing next to the couch. "It has been a while, Pansy, Blaise."

"Yes, our apologies for that," Aunt Pansy said lightly. "We have been busy with our work. Some clients are rather difficult to please and they take up a lot of time."

Mother nodded coolly and her eyes softened considerably when she gazed at the blond boy still seated on the couch. "Scorpius, happy birthday, sweetheart," she murmured and as if on cue, Scorpius slid off the couch and wandered over to his mother to accept the hug she gave him.

It didn't feel right that she was ignoring Harry and even his little sister, but he didn't dare to speak up, fearing he would make her angry. He just hoped that she would at least be polite to Harry and Lily, if only because it was his birthday.

That probably made him a selfish person, but he really just wanted to enjoy his birthday with his family without having to worry about his mother being mean to his stepfather.

* * *

The conversation was rather stilted and it was clear that everybody was trying their best to keep the atmosphere as light as possible. Mother was still ignoring Harry and hadn't even looked at Lily once; Harry didn't seem to mind that as he was chatting quite friendly with Uncle Blaise and grandmother, while Aunt Pansy talked to mother and father was having a serious conversation with grandfather. Scorpius had chosen to stay close to Harry, so that he could play with his sister, who didn't seem intent on going to sleep soon.

"So, Scorpius, how does it feel: being a big brother?" Uncle Blaise asked curiously once there was a lull in his conversation with Harry.

"It's fun. She's very sweet," Scorpius told him and Lily giggled, making him smile.

"She's less fussy than Draco was at that age," Grandmother chuckled and let the little girl hold her thumb.

"Yes, Draco mentioned something along those lines," Harry chuckled while he gazed tenderly at his daughter. "I'm not complaining, though. Only waking up once every night is amazing. Hermione really envies me for that."

"Ah, she has a daughter as well, right?" Grandmother murmured.

Harry nodded. "She's almost seven now. She was a really fussy baby, waking up multiple times throughout the night. Ron looked like a zombie. She only calmed down when she was around ten months old."

"Are you talking about Miss Granger?" Scorpius asked, curiosity piqued. He knew that Harry visited his friends nearly every week, but he hadn't seen any of them yet.

"Mrs. Weasley-Granger, actually," Harry smiled. "She's married to Ron."

"And she didn't want to relinquish her last name completely?" Grandmother asked amused.

Harry shook his head and chuckled. "No, she said it would be too weird if she was also called Mrs. Weasley, so she insisted on hyphenating their names."

Uncle Blaise opened his mouth, but was interrupted by a house elf popping into the room to announce that lunch was ready to be served.

While they all piled out of the living room to go to the dining hall, Scorpius walked next to Harry and asked, "Could I meet your friends?"

He held his breath when Harry looked at him bemused. Was the request that odd? Harry had been part of the family for nearly a year now, but Scorpius had never met his friends before. He didn't know much about them either; only that he had been friends with them for a really long time already and that he didn't have any other family, aside from a Muggle one at his mother's side. The only reason why Scorpius knew that Harry had Muggle family was because he had overheard his father talking about them to Harry in the library a couple of months ago. Their conversation had been rather heated, but Scorpius hadn't been able to pick up everything of it, because they had kept their voices down. The little information he had picked up had been enough to inform him that the Muggle family was a taboo subject.

"Sure, why not?" Harry smiled. "If you want, you can meet them in two weeks. They have some days off then."

"You're still not his real parent, Potter, so you don't have a say in where he goes, despite living here," Mother remarked sharply.

Scorpius started as he hadn't noticed her coming up to them.

"Good thing Draco still has a say over him then," Harry replied, his smile dripping with sweet poison. "I'll just have to ask him whether he minds his son visiting my friends. Remember, Greengrass, you can't control who Scorpius visits during his week with his father."

Before mother could shoot another poisonous comment, Aunt Pansy appeared next to her. "Astoria, you _have_ to tell me where you bought this lovely dress!"

Scorpius breathed out in relief; for one moment he had feared that both adults would start throwing hexes. He was grateful for Aunt Pansy's interruption.

* * *

Lunch was delicious; it consisted out of Scorpius' favourite meals and also had plates with small, rectangular slices of bread with various toppings, ranging from the normal cheese with ham to the exotic things like roasted oyster on toasted bread.

Mother had offered a few snide remarks, which Harry had countered quickly every time. The rest of the guests tried to distract mother, while father talked to Harry and Scorpius.

The boy was starting to become quite exasperated with his mother – a feeling he wasn't familiar with when it came to his parents. Yes, he understood that she was still hurt by the divorce – but did that mean she had to ruin his birthday by being mean to his stepfather and his sister?

Aside from those little remarks, lunch passed by somewhat peacefully and two hours later they were all seated in the living room again with the presents piled up on the low table.

"Go on, open your presents, darling," Grandmother smiled and gestured towards the stack of presents.

His grandparents had given him three books about dragons, which included information about the different races, their habits and their habitats. A bright smile bloomed on his face; he had always been fascinated by dragons, but sadly none of his tutors thought it was necessary to include a lecture about magical creatures in their classes. Aunt Pansy and Uncle Blaise gave him several puzzles which required him to solve the problems correctly if he wanted to discover what kind of magic the puzzles possessed. Father had thrown the couple an exasperated look, but hadn't protested against it; Aunt Pansy smiled impishly and winked.

Mother's present consisted out of a series of history novels; Scorpius could remember mentioning the title once a couple of months ago and was pleasantly surprised that she had remembered it.

Out of all the presents he had opened so far, father's present was the one that excited him the most. It was a Nimbus 2006; the sleek, red brown broom greeted him when he opened the package. The name was etched into the wood in golden letters and the tail was black, not a single twig out of place. It was the newest release of the Nimbus Racing Broom Company and it had only been in the stores for two weeks. It wasn't as fast as the Firebolt Supreme, but it could hold its own well enough in a race.

"Thank you, father!" Scorpius exclaimed – louder than he had intended to be, but he couldn't mask the excitement in his voice. He had been flying since he was seven years old, but father had never allowed him to fly on a new broom; the boy had been using his father's old broom every time they had played Quidditch in the garden and he hadn't seen the need to complain about that, because those brooms were quite fast on their own already. He had merely assumed he would receive a new broom when he started attending Hogwarts.

"Just promise you'll leave the dangerous stunts until you're older," Father murmured dryly, ignoring grandmother's sigh.

"I promise!" Scorpius said eagerly, carefully stroking the sleek handle. His own Nimbus 2006 – he could hardly believe he was holding the broom!

When he finally managed to tear his gaze away from the broom, his eyes roamed over the table, trying to find Harry's present – only to not find it. He bit his lip, wondering whether Harry had even bought something for him, but not daring to ask about it, because he didn't want to sound greedy or spoilt. Although Harry had bought him a Christmas present, so was it bad of him to assume he would get a birthday present as well?

"What, Potter? Too focused on your own child to buy a present for your stepson?" Mother asked icily, her blue eyes burning fiercely.

"No, not too focused. I just can't buy it yet," Harry replied calmly and shot an apologetic look at Scorpius.

Scorpius was ashamed to admit that he felt relieved at that admission; so Harry hadn't forgotten about him nor had decided to ignore his birthday. For one brief moment there, he had been afraid that Harry would indeed be too focused on his own child to pay attention to his birthday and he felt embarrassed. He should have known that Harry would never ignore him, even now that he had his own child.

"Why? You're not going to tell me you don't have enough money," Mother snorted and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Or did you forget his birthday?"

"Not that it is any of your business, but I didn't forget his birthday. I can't buy his present yet, because it won't be released for another week," Harry bit out, while he adjusted the bottle he was holding so that Lily could continue drinking her milk.

"How do we know that you're not just lying?" Mother sneered.

"Astoria, would you please shut up about it?" Father sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Harry already told you he can't buy the present yet. He's not lying about it, so there is no need to go on about this."

"Of course you would back him up." Mother rolled her eyes and the look she shot father was quite venomous. "He warms your bed, so …"

"Astoria!" Grandmother suddenly raised her voice, making Scorpius jump in fright. He had never seen his grandmother look so fierce before. "This is not an appropriate subject!"

"I was merely stating the truth. Not my fault if Potter can't handle it," Mother snapped.

"It seems to me that you can't handle reality," Harry retorted icily. "I shouldn't have to justify myself, but if it keeps you from running your damn mouth and ruining Scorpius' birthday, then I'll tell you what I'm planning to buy and why it has to wait. I'm planning on buying tickets for the Quidditch match between Great Britain and Germany. The sale will start next week, so I wasn't able to buy them sooner. There. Now happy?"

"Thank you, Harry," Scorpius said softly, trying to ignore the heaviness in his stomach.

Harry offered him a weak smile. "You're welcome." He stood up and placed the empty bottle on the table. After making certain Lily burped – a kitchen towel on his shoulder soaking up the spit – he walked over to the door. "I'm going to put her in bed." His back was ramrod straight and he seemed intent on ignoring mother's heavy gaze.

The conversation started very slowly after that and grandmother refused to address mother entirely.

Scorpius tried to ignore the tense atmosphere hanging like a heavy rain cloud in the room, but it was difficult and his earlier happiness at having his family around him was quickly diminishing. Why did his mother have to be so mean to Harry? There had been no need for her to go on about Harry's lack of presents after he had already explained why he couldn't buy it yet.

He only had a couple more hours with his family before they had to return home again and he resolved to try and make the best of it. Surely mother would keep her nasty comments to herself, now that grandmother had scolded her.

* * *

It was half an hour before dinner started and the conversation was flowing more natural now. Lily had woken up just an hour ago and father had retrieved her from her bed, bringing her back downstairs to the living room. She was currently laying down on a fluffy pillow on the couch and Scorpius sat next to her, tickling her belly to make her laugh. Her silver grey eyes glittered with unshed tears from excitement, while peals of bright laughter left her mouth, which in turn brought a smile on the faces of her family who heard her. She had only fussed around for a few minutes after father placed her on the couch and Scorpius had quickly distracted her. While she was indeed quite calm, once she started crying, she usually could keep it up for a long time; especially if she had just woken up from her nap.

He was so lost in entertaining his sister, who had now become extremely fascinated by the glittering necklace of Aunt Pansy (who had sat down next to them, so that she could coo at the baby), that he didn't pay attention to the conversations going on around him; they were merely background noise.

The constant stream of friendly chatter was suddenly cut off abruptly by an angry voice and Scorpius looked up shocked, just in time to see Harry storming out of the room, while his mother glared at the man's retreating back with bright red cheeks.

He was already near the door when his mother reached out to grab his arm.

"Scorpius!"

For the first time in his life, he ignored his mother and ran out of the room, hearing but ignoring the sudden shouting that erupted between mother and father, joined by the distressed crying of his little sister.

Dashing up the stairs, he tried to figure out where Harry could have gone; the manor was quite big and if the man didn't want to be found, he could easily hide in one of the many rooms. The young boy didn't understand why he felt the need to chase after the man; Harry was an adult and while perhaps upset, he probably didn't need Scorpius to check up on him, but he couldn't help but worry about the older wizard. He also felt it was partly his fault that Harry was now upset – if mother hadn't been present, he wouldn't have had a fight with her and wouldn't have left.

Scorpius abruptly halted in the middle of the hallway when an awful suspicion shot through his mind; Harry didn't really leave the manor, right? He was still inside, right? He suddenly wasn't so certain about that and his lower lip was abused by his teeth. If Harry had left the manor, there was no way he would be able to find him. Maybe father would know where Harry would go to, but the man could easily go somewhere else or have a secret place nobody knew about, where he could go to if he didn't want to be disturbed.

Another horrifying thought rose up: what if Harry decided that he didn't want to deal anymore with Scorpius' mother and that father wasn't worth the hassle of putting up with her? Would he leave them behind and take Lily with him? He wouldn't do that, right? He couldn't leave them behind.

To his embarrassed surprise, he felt hot tears pricking his eyes and he blinked, trying to push them back, but instead they dripped down his cheeks, leaving a warm, wet trail behind. He tried to wipe them away, scolding himself for crying like a baby – wasn't he too old to cry out of worry? – but the tears kept coming and his shoulders started shaking with supressed sobs. The next intake of breath hurt his throat and he felt like he couldn't breathe properly; he was taking several, shuddery breaths, but they didn't seem capable of filling his lungs and he whimpered out loud.

He nearly yelped and jumped when a pair of slender, strong arms wrapped themselves around him and tugged him against a warm body.

"Hey, Scorpius, what's wrong? Why are you crying?" Harry asked concerned and rubbed his back carefully, while at the same time trying to push the boy slightly away from him so that he could look him in the eyes.

Scorpius shook his head and buried his face in Harry's sweater, his stuffed nose faintly picking up the scent of honey. His hands were tightly clenched in the fabric and he trembled slightly from relief when he realised that Harry hadn't left and was still _here_. Now that Harry was in front of him, he felt even more silly and embarrassed for bawling like this, but his body wasn't obeying him and instead of calming down, his sobbing grew louder; all his pent up emotions seemed to be released in the form of hot tears and try as he might, he wasn't able to stop himself.

"All right, come on now," Harry muttered and gently guided him inside the nearest room, which turned out to be Harry's office once Scorpius lifted his head and managed to make out the desk in front of the window through his blurry gaze.

The dark haired man pushed him on his chair – which felt more comfortable than it seemed – and knelt down in front of him.

"Let it all out; no need to hold back," Harry murmured gently and started softly caressing his hair.

It took an embarrassingly long time for Scorpius to calm down somewhat and by the time he stopped crying, his chest hurt from the force of the sobbing he had done and his head felt incredibly stuffy, making him want to go to sleep. His eyes felt gritty and they burned slightly; he took a shuddering inhale, spent from his bout of crying.

"Feel better?" Harry asked softly and Scorpius nodded hesitatingly.

Oddly enough, while the crying had left him a bit embarrassed and quite spent, he somehow felt lighter, as if a heavy burden had disappeared through the waterfall of tears.

"You're ready to tell me why you were crying?" Harry shifted a bit, so that he was putting most of his weight on his right knee. "You don't have to if you don't want to."

"I – I thought you were leaving," Scorpius replied in a small voice and sniffed a bit.

A handkerchief showed up in his vision and he accepted it gratefully, wiping the remaining tears of his cheeks and blowing his nose.

"Leaving?" Harry furrowed his eyebrows and looked bewildered. "Why would I leave?"

"I thought you were sick of putting up with mother and you had decided to leave us," Scorpius whispered, shame once again burning him once he spoke his fear out loud. Would Harry think he was childish now?

"Oh, Scorpius," Harry sighed and shook his head, smiling sadly. "I admit that your mother can try my patience a lot, but I'm not going to leave any of you, just because she can be hard to deal with. I knew what to expect when I agreed to live with your father."

Scorpius stared at him and bit his lip. He opened his mouth to ask the question that had been lingering on his mind for a few months now, but didn't dare to and looked down at the floor, feeling his cheeks flushing.

"What? Do you want to ask something?" Harry inquired curiously. "I promise I won't get mad."

"I … It's … Do you regret being with father?" he blurted out and his eyes widened at the same time as green eyes did. He cringed; a hole in the ground that wanted to swallow him up sounded lovely now. He couldn't believe he had actually asked that! "Be-because my mother is being so mean to you," he added in a small voice.

Harry pursed his lips and looked thoughtful. "No, I don't regret being with your dad," he answered after a short silence. "Being with him is probably one of the best decisions I've made in my life."

"Even with my mother acting like this?"

A forlorn smile was his answer. "I can't say I like the way she acts towards me, but I can understand why she acts like that."

"But she's being mean to you for no reason!" Scorpius protested and leaned forwards; his hands gripping his knees.

Harry shook his head. "As much as I don't like to think about it, she does have a reason," he replied softly and his eyes gained a distant sheen as if he was thinking about something. "Draco and I did hurt her after all, so it's normal that she doesn't like me a lot."

Well, yes, Harry was the reason why father had wanted a divorce; Scorpius knew that, but he didn't understand why his mother insisted on keeping this attitude towards Harry. The divorce was nearly a year ago – couldn't she let it go?

Harry seemed to know what he was thinking, for he smiled faintly and said, "It's a bit too complicated for you to understand now, Scorpius. This is between your mother and I; just know that I'm not going to leave, purely because she and I have a disagreement."

"I still don't like how she treats you; she's not very nice and I don't like her when she's like that," Scorpius insisted stubbornly and crossed his arms, resisting the urge to pout.

"She's still your mother, Scorpius. How she treats me shouldn't affect your bond with her," Harry reprimanded him gently. "She's still your family, even if you don't like how she acts sometimes."

"But you're family too," Scorpius retorted bewildered. "You're my stepfather."

An odd silence fell upon them. Belatedly the blond boy realised that he had never called Harry like that before; certainly he had introduced him like that to a fellow classmate if they happened to see him being picked up by Harry, but he had never said it to Harry himself.

Not being completely aware of it, he hold his breath and stared wide eyed at the man kneeling in front of him.

Harry stirred and a warm smile unfolded on his lips. "That's true." He inclined his head and slowly stood up. "If you feel up to it, let's go back downstairs. It wouldn't do for the birthday boy to be absent on his own party." He winked and Scorpius released a watery laugh.

After a short moment of hesitation, Scorpius grabbed Harry's hand and held it tightly when they left the room; he knew something significant had just happened and while he couldn't exactly pinpoint what it was, he did know that it left him happy and feeling as if that particular something had been a long time coming.

Before they entered the living room again, Harry threw him a questioning look and Scorpius nodded back determined; he could handle a few more hours with his family. Especially now that he had the knowledge that Harry wouldn't let himself be scared off by mother.

* * *

A couple of days after his birthday, father picked him up after his lessons were finished. The first thing he noticed upon his arrival at Malfoy Manor was that neither Harry or Lily seemed to be present and he turned questioning eyes at father.

"Where are Harry and Lily?" he asked confused while he shrugged himself out of his jacket and untied his shoelaces.

"They are visiting some of his friends," Father murmured and nodded at an elf who had appeared to place his stuff away. "They'll be back soon."

"Oh." Scorpius blinked and then shrugged. It wasn't the first time that Harry had left to visit one of his friends.

He was almost near the foot of the staircase with his bag – he had homework to do and he didn't want to put it off until the weekend – when father stopped him.

"Scorpius? Can I speak to you for a moment?"

"Sure," Scorpius replied bewildered and wondered whether he had done something wrong. Father seemed awfully solemn and it worried him a bit.

Father beckoned him to follow and he was led to father's office – the second one, which was located on the ground floor and served more as an archive. While Scorpius was directed to sit down at one of the three chairs, father leaned against his desk and gazed at him intently.

"There is something I want to discuss with you," Father started and his voice wavered oddly.

Scorpius nodded slowly, but chose to keep quiet.

"Harry and I have been together for a while now," Father continued slowly; his fingers were softly drumming against the wood of the desk. "I was wondering … How would you feel about Harry becoming family?"

The blond boy blinked, not certain whether he understood the request. Harry was already family, no? "But he's family," he pointed out; his eyebrows furrowed. "He's my stepfather, right?"

"Yes, he is." Father briefly smiled and then went on, "But what I mean is whether you would mind if he became family officially."

The wording of this particular request – more specifically, the word 'officially' – alerted Scorpius that something very important was being asked of him and that he should pay close attention.

"What do you mean, father?" he asked hesitatingly. Father was asking a very important question and he didn't want to give the wrong answer.

Father took a deep breath and seemed to steady himself – for what, the small boy had no idea. "I'm asking whether you would be opposed to my asking Harry to marry me," he reworded his question and the sharp angles of his face softened.

"Marry him?" Scorpius repeated dumbfounded.

Out of all the possibilities, he hadn't expected his father to discuss something as life changing as that. Living together and having a baby was one thing – marriage would make it more permanent, more official. After seeing his parents going through a divorce, he didn't really believe anymore that a marriage lasted a life time, but maybe in this case it would. Maybe Harry was the one father really needed to be with and he had just found him a bit late.

When he was younger, grandmother had loved telling him stories about people who found their soulmate and lived happily ever after – once she had admitted that she thought that grandfather was her soulmate. Maybe grandmother's stories were true and Harry was father's soulmate. Maybe that meant that father would stay with the dark haired man for the rest of his life.

"If you don't think you feel ready to have Harry joining the family officially, you can say it," Father broke through his thoughts. "I'm not going to be angry at you. This concerns you as much as it does us, so you can be honest about it."

Scorpius shook his head quickly. "I don't mind," he spoke up honestly.

"You really don't?" Father stared at him intently, as if he was trying to pick up signs that the young boy was lying.

"No, I don't," Scorpius replied smiling, relaxing against the hard back of the chair.

One year ago, he had been content to mostly ignore Harry and his relationship with father; he had been slightly bothered by mother's treatment of Harry, but it hadn't really concerned him. That all had changed with the birth of his sister, making him realise that opening up to Harry and accepting him didn't automatically mean that he was choosing sides. It merely meant that he could make his own decisions about whom he liked.

"Thank you, Scorpius," Father smiled and relief shone in his stone grey eyes.

If Scorpius had still had the slightest doubt of accepting Harry into the family officially, those doubts would have been wiped away completely by the look on father's face. He had come to terms long ago that the love between his parents hadn't been strong enough to remain together; he was just glad that his father had found that particular strong love in Harry. Not many people were able to find the one who they were meant to be with and the boy was happy that his father wouldn't remain lonely and sad. He wished that his mother would find someone else soon as well, but time would tell.

For now he could look forward to welcoming Harry in their family officially.

* * *

On Valentine's day, while Scorpius was looking after his little sister with the help of a house elf, his father asked Harry to marry him. Scorpius had fallen asleep by the time father came to check on him, but the bright smiles on both men's faces and the golden band glittering around Harry's finger the following day told the blond boy Harry's answer to father's question.

Mother was not happy with the upcoming wedding, but Scorpius decided that he couldn't keep pushing away his feelings just to spare mother's and let her know – politely – that he was looking forward to welcoming Harry in the family and that he would appreciate it if she was nicer to him.

Scorpius doubted that mother and Harry would ever become best friends, but for now he settled for civil behaviour between them and looked forward to a new future with Harry in his family.

He might have wished that some things had turned out differently, but all in all, he couldn't say that he was regretting the way his life was turning out to be.

"Scorpius, you're ready? Your dad is getting nervous," Harry smiled; his emerald green eyes sparkling like the gem they resembled.

Scorpius grinned. "Yes, I'm ready."

Then he started walking in front of Harry, leading the man to the altar where father was waiting for them – ready to start a new life.

A new beginning.

* * *

**AN2: This is the official ending to the series. There won't be any sequel after this, but you can still look forward to one more prequel in Harry's POV, called A Wonky Start. It will be posted on the 27th of February for all the ones who are interested :) (Although I am working on one more story in this series from Scorpius' pov - more specifically: him meeting Teddy. Don't know yet when that will be finished, though)**

**I hope you liked this series - I certainly had a lot of fun writing it. Please leave your thoughts behind in a review and hopefully I'll see you all back again in the last installment of this series :)**

**Cuddles**

**Melissa**

**P.S. For more information about my upcoming and posted stories, please visit my profile.**


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